Beyond the Wooden Cubicles
by nalutrashipper
Summary: Natsu overhears a student watching his favorite movie of all time, Saving Private Ryan. He wants to meet her and yet every time he has the chance to, fate seems to be pulling them away from each other. Rated M for use of foul words. [NaLu] Cover image by taleen777 of Tumblr. One Shot.


**It's my second one shot! I hope everybody enjoys it :) R & R**

* * *

Natsu released a long held sigh from his mouth, glancing up and away from the countless of notes sprawled across the small corner off of one of the library's cubicles for students to have some kind of privacy when they're studying.

It had been hours since he had started studying for their Chemistry finals tomorrow and even if he _loved_ the subject, it didn't make studying any carefree. It was still hard, though his interest did help him absorb the information easier than most.

He knew he should have started studying for the finals earlier, but the release of a new video game had him and his buddy Gray cooped up in their small apartment for days on end, only going out of the comfort of its walls to buy snacks when they run out. He knew cramming should be beyond him. He knew it but they had been waiting for the release of the new Warhammer game for forever now. It felt right to play it as soon as it was out.

But now, as he rolled his head to stretch the muscles on his neck, he thought maybe he should've waited.

Beside him, Gray was buried nose-deep on his own Chemistry books. Well, at least they aren't suffering on their own. Natsu contemplated picking on Gray just to relax his shoulders a bit only to see a flash of red hair and the click of Erza's stilettos as she walked pass them. He glanced at Erza's direction to see her turning to the Law section of the university's library, she was probably looking for resources of her own to use for tomorrow.

Yeah, it would probably be the best for all parties involved if he were to leave the raven-haired man alone for now.

Natsu caressed his calloused hands and cracked his knuckles, deciding to get back to studying when the sound of gun shots reached his ears. It was faint enough that if he didn't have ears as sensitive as his, he wouldn't be able to hear it. He grimaced, feeling jealous for the person sitting on the cubicle's corner opposite of him for being so carefree despite the shadow of finals looming over them all.

He sighed again for what felt like the umpteenth time and diverted his attention back to the notes in front of him, his grim reminder of what was to come tomorrow. Inevitably, he was going to have to take that finals. There was no way around it. Well, aside from burning the school to ashes - which to him, didn't sound like such a bad idea, considering his peculiar love for fire and heat - or dropping.

Considering his options, he came to the conclusion that he'd rather take the exam than put a stop to his dream career before even starting by not graduating or being thrown to jail.

Minutes that felt like hours passed before the blue-haired student librarian came strolling through the cubicles. Natsu was about to greet Levy when she stopped at the other side of his cubicle.

"Lucy, I've told you to stop watching your war movies here." Levy hissed, glancing at her sides as if afraid that someone would see her. "You should read while you're in the library. Besides, don't you have that Literature finals that needed finishing?"

"Come on, Levy, I'm so bored, I finished working on it days ago." A feminine voice sounded from the cubicle opposite of Natsu's. For some unknown reason, her voice made his stomach churn in the most bizarre ways. "And I can't stand the overwhelming silence. It's kind of disgusting."

"What?" Levy said, her face turning in confusion. "Seriously, how are you even a writer? Anyway, you watch movies in the library and read books when you're in the middle of a busy crowd? You're messed up."

"Just shut up and walk away, Levy." The voice that made Natsu's stomach jump answered. He had to admit it, the fact that she was watching a war movie was appealing enough to Natsu but the way she talked made him feel like they would be great friends. "Hurry and finish up already. I'm sick of waiting here alone."

"Then get yourself a boyfriend." Levy muttered before leaving, apparently not giving her friend a chance to talk back.

Natsu was about to go back to studying when the movie that the girl was watching sounded off again. _"The three men are brothers, sir."_ He could feel mini-Natsus dancing around in his equation-filled brain. The girl sitting on the opposite corner of the library was watching _Saving Private Ryan_.

Hot damn.

Before he knew it, he found himself standing up to take a peek at the girl watching his favorite war movie of all time when Gray spoke up.

"Where ya goin', flame brain? Giving up already?" He taunted, his droopy eyes cold as he spoke.

Natsu, who couldn't help but be ticked off from his rival/friend's words, turned to look at the raven-haired man beside him. "What'd ya say, ya icy idiot?!"

The two bickered back and forth, their attention momentarily and entirely focused on one another as they formed jabs after jabs against one another. Natsu was about to spout off another insult when he heard Levy's voice call for her friend.

"Lucy, I'm done." Natsu looked away for a moment to see Levy with her book bag slung over her shoulder. "We should go before we're late for Professor Freed's class."

Gray, unable to contain himself any further and plenty pissed that Natsu had the guts to look away, started to grab Natsu's collar and plant his face flat against the library floor. "The hell ya lookin' away for, ya short-attention-spanned idiot!?"

Natsu grumbled, forgetting about his fight with Gray. He had to see this Lucy girl. She was interesting and his gut spoke to him like it never did before. He had the feeling that Lucy was someone he would have the greatest pleasure to meet.

Scrambling up and away from Gray, Natsu was about to stand up when a looming figure with blood-red hair appeared before them. "What do you imbeciles think you're doing inside the library?" Erza spoke against her bared teeth.

"E-Erza," The two muttered before being plucked down from the ground and forced to sit on their designated seats.

"Get back to studying." She spat before leaving the two alone, their furiously nodding heads a clear indication that the two were going to keep their heads down for at least a few minutes before they get back to killing each other with dull words.

Natsu stood up and reached over the small wood that separated him and the girl just a few seconds ago to see that it was deserted. Natsu looked at the student librarian's table only to see that Levy was gone and in her place, was the notorious Mirajane, stamping books with a deceivingly kind smile. He knew better though.

* * *

Weeks had passed and Natsu had grown to hate Gray more as the days passed by. Not only because he was being bitchier than normal. He was the reason he never got around to seeing Lucy again.

Opportunities to finally see Lucy came again and again. He was blessed. But everytime he tried to sneak a peek at the owner of the honey-filled voice, Gray was there to stop him. He was cursed. It was like the ice bastard was doing it on purpose.

There was that one time when she was watching Hacksaw Ridge, Andrew Garfield's prayer to God unmistakable to his ears. Natsu was quick on his feet this time, determined to finally see Lucy's face. He shot up from his seat and ran around the long cubicle see Lucy from the other side instead of sneaking a peek from beyond the wood only to startle her to thinking that he was some creep when he was tackled to the ground by Gray and their other friends to the ground.

"Apartment war!" They all yelled simultaneously, angering Levy who was approaching them probably to collect Lucy again and by Mira who was already manning the Student Librarian's desk.

By the time Natsu was back to his feet, only the remnants of Levy's ocean blue hair was seen exiting the library.

They were banned from the library for two weeks because of their small stunt and though it had nothing to do with Natsu, he was still banned. Normally, he wouldn't care. He could just study in the confines of their two bedroom apartment. But now, he was desperate to meet Lucy. Especially now because he felt like there was some kind of fate pulling the strings. They seemed to be at the place at the same time but for some annoying reason, the Fates just wouldn't let them meet.

By the time their ban was uplifted, Natsu felt like Lucy never really went to the library anymore. He kept glancing at the cubicle opposite of him, desperate to see her. At this point, he couldn't care less if she were to think that he was kind of pervert. He could just explain it all to her. He _needed_ to see Lucy.

His ever-growing curiousness was eating him alive.

* * *

Natsu and Gray were on their way to Chemistry class. They were passing the wide student lounge on the way to the room when Natsu heard her voice.

"You've been strangely watching war movies one after the other. Is this some kind of new obsession?" Levy's voice asked. Natsu ignored Levy's voice. He must be hallucinating. They've been running for so long now that his breathing was getting heavy and labored. Stress was eating him up.

"No, I've just been watching them for research purposes." Lucy. It was Lucy. She was here. Mere feet kept them away. "Although I must say, I _am_ enjoying the movies. I found this user off of Tumblr who recommended me some war movies when I asked for them and everything was really great. Especially Saving Private Ryan. What a masterpiece."

Natsu's heart hammered in his chest. _Finally._ Natsu stopped running and halted his movements all together, finally living out his dream for the past few weeks. No, it had been _months._ He was about to turn around when Gray grabbed his wrist and tugged him forward, his head lulling and swaying from the force.

The only thing he could see was a golden hair that shimmered from where the sun's light hit it, its owner walking beside a petite blue-haired lady.

"God damn, it Gray!" Natsu cursed, panic coursing through his veins as Gray's frantic running affected his emotions. "What's that all about?!"

"What the fuck do you mean?" Gray spat as he continued running. The door to the Chemistry class was nearing them. "I just saved both our asses, Gildarts ain't gonna be happy when we arrive late for the third time this week, hothead."

Natsu spat out a curse as he opened the door with so much force everyone inside jumped from their seats. He spent the next few hours muttering and cursing to himself, promising to scout out every corner of the school for a blonde-haired writer.

* * *

Natsu played with the soccer ball on his hand, throwing it up on the air and catching it only to throw it back up again. It had been days since he saw the second clue to Lucy's identity; her gold hair. Her long waves didn't leave his mind for longer than a few seconds only to resurface again.

They just got back to their apartment, resting after almost a full day of practice under the heat. It must be the restlessness talking but Natsu's mind was full of Lucy than usual. Now, while they were lounging on their sofa, mindlessly watching TV, he thought about practice and how it temporarily let him forget about the golden-haired woman.

Man, maybe practice should last for a full day.

"What're ya thinking 'bout, flame-brain?" Gray's voice annoyed him. It was the voice that interrupted him every time he thought he was about to meet Lucy.

"Lucy."

Silence enveloped them. Natsu blinked, realizing that he had just spoken out loud. He looked at Gray, the raven-haired man's brows furrowed while his mouth twisted in confusion, his eyes asking millions of questions.

"What?" Gray asked, bewildered.

"Levy has this friend who watches the _best_ war movies. Her name's Lucy and I want to meet her but every time I think I'm close to meeting her, something gets on the way." Natsu decided to leave out the part where Gray was the one who interrupts him. "I heard her last week by the student lounge say that someone from Tumblr recommended her the movies but before I could see her, you dragged me to Chemistry."

"Whoa, calm your horses." Gray laughed, raising his arms in feign surrender. "Besides, shouldn't you just ask Levy to introduce her to you? Aren't you acquaintances of some sort? She's dating your cousin, right?"

Natsu shot up. _How could he be so fucking stupid?!_ He ripped his bed sheets from his body and grabbed his shoes from under his bed, slipping them on with haste.

"What the fuck?" Gray muttered. "You didn't think of that first, you dumb-dumb?"

Natsu threw Gray a harsh look before swiping his keys from his table and opening the door. Before he could leave, Gray spoke again. "Hey, didn't you say that someone from Tumblr posted something about war movies for reference purposes?"

Halting, Natsu turned back to Gray, his eyes wide with realization. It might be. It might be that Lucy was the one who asked for those recommendations. Natsu muttered a curse before banging the door close behind him and running all the way to the library, hoping and praying to any God who was willing to listen to his prayer.

* * *

Opening the library's doors, Natsu hurried to the Student Librarian's desk as fast he could without running. He didn't want to be banned from the place again. And after that little show that they pulled, the two student librarians were being extra skeptical of their movements.

Mira and Levy were beside one another, talking as they covered some books. Probably new. Natsu approached Levy, pulling a chair with him to sit on while he chatted. When he sat down in front of her, Levy looked up from the book she was currently working on while Mira went on like nothing.

"Hey, Lev." Natsu greeted, feeling dumb that he came here in a hurry and ended up coming empty-handed and heavy breaths. He must look suspicious as hell.

"Hey, Natsu." The petite lady answered, her voice low and dripping with confusion. He wouldn't blame her. He _did_ look shady as all hell.

"Can you introduce me to a friend of yours?" Natsu, who came in such a hurry, realized too late that he should have thought about how he would phrase his request. Oh well. Shouldn't dwell on something that happened on the past anymore.

"What, like, for a fling?" Levy asked, her confusion growing by the second. They were never really close but he knew that she knew him enough to know that he didn't do flings. Or romantic relationships in general.

"No, I mean, not really a fling." Natsu spoke, his voice sheepish. He scratched the back of his neck anxiously. "Ya know, Lucy? I wanna be friends with her."

Levy's eyes widened in realization before it sparkled with interest. "Oh! Lucy's-"

"Oh ho?" The two turned to the she-devil, pausing to take part on their conversation. "Is little Natsu interested in our Lucy?"

"Yeah, actually." Natsu nodded, not seeing the point of denying it. "I heard her watching war movies on the cubicle opposite of the one that I usually sat on and I heard you guys talking in the student lounge. She said she loved the movies."

"Yes, she did say she loves them." Levy smiled, the book she was covering lay forgotten on the table.

"Well, don't you sit by the third row of cubicles, Natsu?" Mira asked before Levy could tell him any more information. Natsu nodded in response to Mira's question. "Why don't you go ahead and sit there, she might show up? Won't she, Levy?"

Natsu shifted his eyes to Levy, who looked to be searching Mira's eyes for answers to her unspoken questions. She turned to Natsu with an uneasy smile before nodding. "She might, Natsu."

He was satisfied with that for today. Besides, he could just annoy Levy into introducing Lucy to him some other time. For now, he was fine with the possibility of being able to catch a glimpse of that golden hair.

The library was emptier than usual, probably because it was a Saturday and with finals out of the way, they had some free time before grades were up. Knowing college students, they were out and about on the street, grinding their hips against complete strangers.

Natsu looked around the place, admiring the way the books reached the ceiling. There was someone by the couches snuggling up against the armrest with a book on hand, a couple by the back of one of the shelves, and a brunette with hair so tussled Natsu considered the idea of her hair being a wig.

The brunette was sitting on one of the chairs in front of a large table that was supposed to occupy about ten people. She was crossing out words after words from a small slip of paper, looking back in her phone and jutting out notes again.

Natsu was about to sit by his usual cubicle to wait for Lucy when the note caught his attention. It wasn't some normal note, it was a list. And it had his favorite movies in it.

Without meaning to, Natsu approached the brunette and tapped her shoulders. "I just wanna say you've got great taste in movies."

"Oh, thank you." The brunette smiled. For some reason, her voice reminded him of Lucy but that was impossible. He was sure Lucy was blonde. Damn, his desperation must be off the charts at this point. "But someone actually recommended them to me."

"Really?" Natsu beamed. "Can I see it? I wanna check if there are any movies that I haven't seen yet."

The unnamed brunette passed him the note with a smile. Skimming the list, Natsu realized that it was his own recommendations for Lucy. Or so he thought. Maybe his recommendation reached a ton of people. It _was_ posted publicly.

"Hey, _I_ was the one who posted this!" Natsu informed his new friend. Or so to his standards.

"What, really?!" The brown-haired girl smiled. "You're _incomprehensible-bastard_?"

Natsu nodded his head with joy. Though the username wasn't of his making, and was but a result from a bet he lost with Gray, he was still happy about the fact that this girl remembered his username.

"Oh, thank you so much for giving me the recommendations! They helped a lot for my book, _and_ I actually enjoyed watching them. I never really thought I would but I did!" The way the brown-haired girl's hair moved from her head was weird but Natsu left it off to people having weird hobbies. "I actually watched _Saving Private Ryan_ here in the library so I had to minimize the volume as much as I could but even then, my friend Levy still reprimanded me! I watched it again at home though, it was too great of a movie not to experience at its fullest."

Natsu observed the speck of blonde that emerged from the supposedly brown-haired lady's head. Her hair had moved from her animated actions as she spoke, making it look more ruffled than it was and now her hair part that was once on the crooked side was now nearing her ear.

"You-your hair." Natsu muttered, pointing to her hair.

"Oh, it's just a wig." The girl giggled and removed it, revealing golden locks that went alive by being freed and ended at her mid-waist. "It's for my job at this weird cafe."

"Lucy." Natsu breathed.

She was ticking off movie titles from a recommendation of his making, watched _Saving Private Ryan_ inside the library, reprimanded by Levy, and was a writer.

The girl he's been mindlessly talking to was Lucy. The girl he's been looking for for ages.

"Uh, yes, actually." The blonde-haired beauty tilted her head, a smile ghosting her lips. "How do you know my name?

"I've been wanting to meet you for months now." Natsu said, picking himself up despite his small tumble. "I-I actually heard you watching _Saving Private Ryan_ inside the library, you were on the cubicle opposite of mine and from then on, I couldn't get you off my mind."

Lucy laughed, her voice ringing in Natsu's mind like that of an angel's. "Is this some kind of new method to pick up girls? I thought they only did this at clubs?"

Natsu's eyes widened at the realization of the implication of his words. "Wha-, no, no!" He stammered before taking a deep breath and starting over again. "No, I just wanted to be your friend. I heard you talk to Levy last month about how you actually liked the movies and so I got curious."

"Well, I'm actually on my way home to watch Dunkirk, it's the only movie I haven't seen from your list." Lucy said, taking her list from Natsu and folding it in half and stuffing it inside her book bag. "Want to watch it with me on the student lounge? You might have some interesting insight. Care to join me...?"

"Natsu. Natsu Dragneel."

"Want to come with, Natsu?" Lucy offered before standing up and walking towards the exit.

Passing by the two girls covering books on the student librarian's desk, Natsu mouthed a _thank you_ to both of them while Lucy bid her goodbyes. She introduced the three of them to each other only to be told that they already knew one another.

* * *

"Why were you so curious about me before we even met, Natsu?"

The said man looked at the golden-haired blessing wrapped around his arms. They've been seeing each other for half a year now, after being friends for a couple of weeks.

After watching Dunkirk at the student lounge, Natsu walked Lucy home that night and parted with the promise of looking for more war movies and watching them together.

Since then, they started meeting up more often. Mostly to watch movies at the student lounge. And while at first, all they watched were war movies, as their friendship progressed, Lucy introduced her favorite movies as well.

He discovered his fascination with fantasy movies from Lucy.

Natsu couldn't help but remember the time when Lucy appeared in front of his doorstep in the middle of the night, asking him to watch a movie with her because she couldn't sleep. He got angry because she just walked the streets alone and in such a skimpy looking outfit but softened at the sight of her ruffled hair and at the fact that she came to him despite having Levy at home.

From then on, Natsu told Lucy to send him a text message instead when she was feeling like watching a movie in the middle of the night so she wouldn't need to walk all the way to his apartment and instead, have him visit her just to be safe.

When they both discovered that watching movies inside their own apartments were way more comfortable than inside the student lounge, they started watching it there instead. Of course, the two were still pretty awkward about the sudden change of venue that they couldn't watch a movie alone for the first couple of days only to end up preferring each other's lone company by the end of the week.

As their relationship grew, they started becoming more comfortable with one another. And while Natsu held Lucy whilst she cried for the nth time because of the death of Hachiko, he couldn't help but blurt out what was on his mind and ask Lucy to be his girlfriend.

She said yes, snot dripping from her nose and her eyes bloodshot, her answer muffled as she cried. She looked beautiful nonetheless.

"Gray was more into mystery movies and I wanted someone to talk with when it comes to movies." Natsu answered, tightening his grip on Lucy as they watched the new _Fantastic Beasts_ movie. "I didn't know I'd get so much more, though."

Lucy laughed and snuggled closer to him for warmth. "I guess the movie _Saving Private Ryan_ helped more than Private Ryan and his family."

Natsu looked down at Lucy, wearing his scarf because according to her it _"smelled like him"_ and wrapped around his arms, and laughed. "Yeah, I guess it did."


End file.
